Dubai: Insurers add dental, mental health coverage as premiums rise up to 20%
For Dubai residents and businesses, it’ll cost them up to 20 per cent more for their health insurance plans but the insurers included some big items such as dental, psychiatric, organ transplant and dialysis coverage in the new packages.
Industry insiders say that these benefits "enrich health insurance" for policy holders.
These new costs and benefits were implemented on 1st January 2025, after new regulations imposed new benefits and changes to the table of benefits in health plans.
"Insurers may have increased their rates by 10-15 per cent according to Avinash Babur, CEO of Insurancemarket.ae, who probably knows how their claims have been in 2024. But those changes do not occur at the same rate with all insurance companies or policies.
"Some companies increased premiums, especially health insurance, but others have stayed the same. All these variations are subject to individual insurers’ claim experience and market strategy. Rates for basic and enhanced basic plans have changed with one company increasing the amount about 20 per cent. It feels like a one-off change and not a phenomenon across all insurers," he said.
In Health insurance rates, health insurance premiums on basic and enhanced plans have risen by about 20 per cent with approximately 75 per cent of companies updating rates, Moin ur Rehman, executive director at Unitrust Insurance Broker, told me.
Health insurance rates have increased by as much as 20 per cent, said Toshita Chauhan, policy director, health and motor insurance, Policybazaar.ae.
"People (independents) as well companies that buy health insurance will pay higher premiums due to the new rules. The government’s new health insurance laws focus on providing access and quality to healthcare. Such changes have been good, but they’ve also created an increase in premiums to pay for the coverage," she said.
Benefits
Insurance companies are updating premiums and benefits to allow for these other coverages — dental, mental health visits, dialysis, etc — Chauhan said. "It can increase premiums, but the good news is that the policies are comprehensive, which means that you will have coverage in areas that you didn’t previously have, and so you’re not paying for a blanket approach to healthcare," she said.
Avinash Babur, a co-founder of BKC Health said insurers have added new benefits as per the changes made by the Dubai Health Authority (DHA).
They consist of enhanced cover for urgent issues including organ transplant (Dh100,000 for recipients only), dialysis (Dh60,000) and drug and medicine costs (Dh2,500 per year, excluding formulary products), he explained. A separate tier for mental health outpatient therapy also arrived with coverage up to Dh800, dental services of up to Dh500 and transport of dead bodies repatriation up to Dh5,000. All of these improvements come with co-insurance caps, which range from 20 per cent for organ transplants and dialysis to 30 per cent for outpatient counseling and prescription drugs.
"Not all insurers have raised their premiums even after implementing these benefits, but some have increased their rates," the head of Insurancemarket.ae said.
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